Gun sling securing device



y 1952 H. 0. SMITH 2,598,143

GUN SLING SECURING DEVICE Filed May 19, 1950 ww mmd Patented May 27, 1952 GUN SLING SECURING DEVICE ,liowardfl. Sm t DesMoincS, Iowa .Appli cationMay 19, 1950, S erialNo. 162,97 9

4 :Claims.

My invention relates to the art of the special garments worn for target shooting with rifles.

ParticularlyI have invented a means for securing the sling of a target shooting gun to the shooting garment.

The object of the sling on a target shooting gun, or any gun that has a sling on it for shooting as distinguished from carrying, is to aid the shooter in steadying the gun on the target.

It isobvious that if the gun can be held in the same position if desired or a given position result. An arm and the sling, the former pushing and the latter pulling are used, therefore, as one leg of a triangle with the body of the shooter and the gun forming the other two legs. one arm cooperating with the sling pushes outwardly 'against the length of the sling which tends to limit-the forward movement of the gun. The harder the forward pressure of the arm against the limiting action of the sling, the more nearly rigid is that leg of the triangle. Since one arm and the sling are exerting considerable pressure against each other during the time of firing there is a possibility of slippage of the sling resulting in poor target scores unless some means is provided for securing the sling to the shoot ing garment to prevent such slippage.

Furthermore, as the rifieman moves his arm to actuate the loading and cooking mechanism of his gun there is a tendency for him to relax tension on the sling. Also, over a period of time the shooter feels a need to relax in between shots so that he will not become tired quickly and also to avoid excessive fatigue. Whenever the shooter thus relaxes his pressure on the sling, there is a great likelihood that it will slip down below his elbow. It is then necessary for him to readjust the sling before firing again. Readjusting the sling would be trouble enough, but he is also faced with the likelihood that he will not duplicate his previous adjustment. Since a major element in making a good score is avoiding variation from shot to shot this need to readjust the sling following any relaxation of pressure on the sling tends to inhibit accuracy. Another important aspect of any means for securing a sling against slippage, however, is to have the securing means readily detachable from the gun sling. While it is desirable to have a sling securing device that holds the sling The firmly, it i also .an advantage to quickly and easily disen age oneself from the nfrom time to time the shooter may want to move back off the ;-firing line, or the order may come to cease firing and he :may .care to disen a e the gun sling from the sling securing means and relax. If thisis-quickly and easily accomplished, and further if the sling can readily be replaced in its original adjustment, it will permit the shooter to relax without losing the adjustment to which he has "become accustomed.

In view of all of these difficulties, therefore, it is :the principal-object of my invention to .provide a gun sling securing device which holds "the sling in afixedrelation to the shooting garment on which the securing device is mounted.

,Itis a further object of :myinventiontoprovide such a securing device for a gun sling that permits quick and easy disengagement of the sling from the securing device.

It is still a further object of :my invention to provide .such a device for securing a gunsling that permits the sling to be readilyresecured .in the same adjustment as it was secured just prior to being detached from the sling securing device.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a gun sling securing device that is durable in use and inexpensive to manufacture.

These and other objects will be apparent to 7 those skilled in the art.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a shooting garment with my sling securing device mounted on the upper left sleeve and showing a fragment of a sling equipped with a hook engaged in the ring.

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the upper left arm portion of the garment and sling securing device mounted thereon taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a view of the sling in use with only the essential portions of the gun and rifleman included.

Referring to the drawings, I have used the numeral [0 to designate the shooting garment, such as a jacket or the like, with my sling securing device designated I! mounted on the upper left sleeve of the jacket. The securing device consists of a strap member l2 that is secured to the jacket and is preferably a portion or continuation of the cover for the sling pad [3. Be-

tween the cover [3 and the garment sleeve l4 suit able padding material I5 may be inserted if desired. Although not necessary, a refined appearance may be given the pad and securing device assembly by binding the edge with strip 16 and securing all of these members together with the stitching H. A ring l8 embraces the strap l2 and may be secured in any desired position by use of a standard sling keeper I9.

A shooter desiring to secure a sling using my device has a sling hook 20 secured to the end of his gun sling 2i and he may secure the end of the sling in the ring l8 by merely hooking the two together. From the hook the sling 2| extends downwardly and under the hand of the shooter gripping the fore-stock of the gun, and is secured to the front of the fore-stock by the usual sling swivel 22. In this manner the sling is fixed with relation to the upper left arm of the shooter and still may be readily detached when desired by simply unhooking the hook 20 from the ring l8. Furthermore, when the shooter prepares to fire again he may reestablish the identical adjustment he had previously by merely reengaging the hook and the ring. While the device I have shown is mounted on a garment to be used by a righthanded rifieman, it is intended that the device could be mounted on the opposite upper sleeve for one who shoots lefthanded.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of my gun sling Securing device and method of making same without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claims, any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

Iclaim:

1. In a gun sling securing device fixed to the bicepts embracing portion of a shooting garment comprising; a strap having a broad portion and a narrow portion; said broad portion being fixed to said garment and said narrow portion forming a loop, and a ring embracing said strap loop, said ring being the sole portion of said seeming device that is operatively engaged by the sling of a gun.

2. In a gun sling securing device designed to be secured to a sleeve of a shooting garment having a sling pad, a sling pad cover having two broad ends and a narrow center portion; said cover being longer than the circumference of said garment sleeve so that a loop of material is left when the broad ends of the cover are stitched over the pad and to the coat, and a ring encircling said loop, said ring being the sole portion of said securing device that is operatively engaged by the sling of a gun.

3. In a gun sling securing device designed to be secured to a shooting garment, a strap having its respective ends fixed to said garment, said strap forming a loop, and a means on said loop that operatively engages a gun sling to secure the sling to said loop; said means being the sole portion of the gun sling securing device that engages a gun sling.

4. In a gun sling securing device secured to the biceps embracing portion of a shooting garment, a pad having two ends fixed to the biceps embracing portion of a shooting garment, a strap loop fixed to said pad; said pad and strap loop secured to each other as to cause a pull on said strap loop to exert a pull on both ends of said pad, and means for securing a gun sling to said strap loop.

HOWARD 0. SMITH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

